1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to the field of safety equipment for protection from natural hazards. More specifically the present invention relates to an enclosure in the form of a bunker for assembly in yards of homes and in community recreation areas. Elements of the enclosure are preferably provided as part of a compact kit for convenient transport and storage, the kit including corrugated steel side and top wall panels, panel interconnection means at panel edges, and soil retaining panels or structures extending outwardly from and around the enclosure.
The enclosure is preferably shaped to deflect the wind so that air flows smoothly over the enclosure without obstruction. This is accomplished by either arranging the soil around the enclosure so that the enclosure is completely covered and the soil forms a continuously and progressively curved surface. The soil support structures are preferably several matching sets of soil retaining panels arranged in a spaced apart series outwardly from the enclosure and in progressively decreasing height.
2. Description of the Prior Art
There have long been cellars and other underground shelters for refuge from tornados, hurricane storm winds and flying debris. Problems with these shelters has been that they are costly and, if there is substantial rain or any flooding, they fill with water. One prior approach to overcome some of these problems has been to construct a shelter taking the form of an enclosure buried in the ground, but has the shortcoming that wind and water can erode the mound around the enclosure, so that protracted storm conditions can place its occupants in jeopardy.
It is thus an object of the present invention to provide a storm shelter kit which is constructed above ground level to minimize the danger of internal flooding and which is compact enough for efficient storage and easy transport.
It is another object of the present invention to provide such a storm shelter kit which includes soil retaining means for retaining soil placed around the enclosure to form a protective cover mound to shield the enclosure against and deflect storm wind, the kit including means for making the mound highly resistant to erosion from high wind and flowing surface water.
It is still another object of the present invention to provide such a storm shelter kit in which the soil retaining means include several series of soil retaining panels of varying heights for arrangement to define the shape of a cover mound as needed.
It is finally an object of the present invention to provide such a storm shelter kit which is inexpensive to manufacture.
The present invention accomplishes the above-stated objectives, as well as others, as may be determined by a fair reading and interpretation of the entire specification.
A storm shelter kit is provided, including several enclosure wall panels; a wall panel interconnection structure for joining the enclosure wall panels together to define an enclosure having side and top enclosure wall portions; and several soil retaining panels for placement around the enclosure for supporting soil placed around and at least partially covering the enclosure wall panels.
The wall panel interconnection structure includes an enclosure frame having several frame members for assembly into a parallelepiped configuration and several pyramid-shaped brackets, each bracket having three bracket walls mutually perpendicular to each other, each bracket wall having a bracket bolt port and a bolt passing through the bracket bolt port and through one of the enclosure frame members to hold the enclosure frame together. The storm shelter kit preferably further includes at least one set of the soil retaining panels of progressively decreasing height, for placement in series in progressively increasing distances from the enclosure and for receiving soil between the enclosure and the soil retaining panels and between the soil retaining panels, to define a mound of soil of selectable shape surrounding the enclosure and at least partially covering the wall panels. The wall panels preferably are formed of corrugated steel.
The soil retaining panels in the at least one set are positioned upright and generally perpendicular to a hypothetical radial line extending from the center of the enclosure, and are sequentially spaced in series outwardly from the enclosure along the hypothetical radial line. The soil retaining panels in the at least one set are placed in series in a sequence of progressively decreasing soil retaining panel heights outwardly from the enclosure. The soil retaining panels in the at least one set are positioned upright and generally perpendicular to a hypothetical radial line extending from the center of the enclosure, and alternatively are sequentially spaced outwardly from the enclosure in a staggered series relative to the hypothetical radial line. One of the side wall panels preferably includes a door opening and a door secured into the opening with hinges so that the door can be opened and can be closed.
A method is provided of constructing a storm shelter from the above kit having at least two of the soil retaining panel sets including the steps of selecting a desired location for the enclosure; arranging the wall panels to define an enclosure and interconnecting the wall panels with the interconnection structures; measuring the distances from each side of the enclosure that the mound is desired to extend; securing one set of the soil retaining panels in series from a point substantially adjacent to the enclosure to a point more remote from the enclosure; and placing soil between the enclosure and the closest soil retaining panel of each series to the enclosure, and between the soil retaining panels, so that the upper surface of the resulting soil mound is contoured to follow the heights of the soil retaining panels along each the series; so that the horizontal extent of the soil mound in the direction of each the series of soil retaining panels from the enclosure is selected and the soil mound shaped and sized according to this selection.
The method preferably includes the additional steps of dividing each of the measured distances by the number of the soil retaining panels in the given series; marking these divisions on the ground; and placing the soil retaining panels in the given series on each of the divisions. The method preferably includes the additional step of placing each of the soil retaining panels generally perpendicular to a hypothetical line extending radially out from a point within the enclosure.
The method preferably still further includes the additional step of placing the soil retaining panels in each of the series in a sequence of progressively decreasing soil retaining panel heights from the soil retaining panel nearest the enclosure to the soil retaining panel farthest from the enclosure; so that the soil mound tapers from the height of the soil retaining panel closest to the enclosure downwardly to the outermost the soil retaining panel in the given series.